


once you've done it, you know (how good love is)

by lxvenxtes



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Criminals, Domestic, Established Relationship, M/M, Slice of Life, specifically scammers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-17
Updated: 2020-11-17
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:21:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,324
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27598136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lxvenxtes/pseuds/lxvenxtes
Summary: "Baby, you got eyes on me?" Hansol whispered as he brought the champagne flute to his lips. He took a sip and tried to hide his grimace. Champagne tasted like liquid sadness."Always, Sol. Look up and to your right." Hansol did as instructed and saw a camera hidden in a portrait of the rich guy who's house this was. Jinyoung Park, who Minghao had told him had no relation to the hot actor who had the exact same name as him."Do I look hot?" he said, placing his glass on a random table.He could practically hear Minghao's eye roll. "Yeah, but you knew that already.""Wanted to see if you would indulge me," he admitted."You two gross me out. How do you get anything done if you're too busy mentally making out?" Mingyu said. Hansol had forgotten he was there.-or verhao scam rich people and are madly in love.
Relationships: Chwe Hansol | Vernon/Xu Ming Hao | The8
Comments: 7
Kudos: 58





	once you've done it, you know (how good love is)

**Author's Note:**

> hi verhaoians! im back to terrorize the tag again! this is mostly just a birthday present to myself but i hope y'all like it too!!
> 
> title from how to love by day6

Hansol was ecstatic. He couldn't contain the joy surging through his body. He was basically dancing instead of walking as he went down the street to the apartment, his headphones just below full blast. It was a perfect night, with a slight breeze and the sunset leaving behind a purple-blue sky. It was lovely after the amazing day he’d had. Life was perfect.

"Turn the music down, you're giving me a headache," Minghao grumbled, through the ear-piece he was wearing.

Hansol grinned at the whine in his tone. "Not a fan of Chloe x Halle?" he teased, turning a corner. "And stay out of my head. We're off the clock, baby."

He still turned the music down.

He distantly heard someone who sounded like Seungcheol say "Baby?" and cursed Minghao in his head. He never told him when people were over. Now he wouldn't have enough food.

He opened the door to their apartment building, pausing his music. He flipped off the stairs, making the woman at the front desk laugh, before pushing the up button to the elevator. (He had a grudge against them because once a week Minghao would make him climb them in the name of exercise and staying healthy. The things he did for love.)

"Did you get food?" Minghao asked, like he always did, definitely knowing the answer to his question. It was tradition after a successful day. And he had to have heard him ordering through the ear-piece.

"No," Hansol lied, like he always did. He stepped into the elevator and leaned against the wall as some 80s synth track played quietly, filling the silence.

A few minutes later, the elevator stopped on their floor- thirteen, two underneath the top floor. Minghao thought it would be less suspicious to prying eyes, but fancy enough that they wouldn't get any questions. Hansol trusted his judgement. It hadn’t led him down the wrong path yet.

He shoved his airpods into his pocket as he walked down the hall, giddiness rising in his chest at the fact that he was home. It was definitely corny but he loved coming home to Minghao after being apart all day.

He pushed open the door and was met with the sound of Seungcheol’s loud laugh. His smile threatened to split his face in half. He walked the short distance to their kitchen with a pep in his step.

"You lied," Minghao said grinning as Hansol dropped the bag of food in front of him. Their table was small and circular so there wasn’t much room for anything but the food.

"I always do." He pressed a kiss to the top of Minghao’s head before he sat in his chair. Their knees bumped, making Minghao shoot him a teasing glare, like the lack of space wasn’t the reason they bought the table in the first place. 

"Hi hyung," Hansol said, glancing at Seungcheol as he moved his arms so Minghao could rest his feet in his lap. Seungcheol had been watching them with a weird expression on his face. He always looked so silly in their apartment, standing out in his neutrals against their obnoxiously colorful furniture.

"Hey, Sol. How was work?" he asked. The expression was exchanged for a smile and a sparkle in his eyes.

"Fantastic, as always," Hansol replied. He wasn’t entirely sure if Seungcheol knew what they did for a living, it wasn’t like they could say they were scammers, but he probably had an idea that was in the right area. Either way, he had never asked and they all seemed content with that. 

"Your head is getting so big," Minghao said, rolling his eyes. He opened the bag of take out with a smile on his face. He was so bad at hiding his pride.

Hansol punched him on the shoulder. “Not as big as yours.” Seungcheol laughed as Minghao kicked him on his shoulder in retaliation.

“I’ve never seen two unmarried people act so married before,” he said, grinning.

“He could only dream of marrying me,” Minghao said.

“You wish,” Hansol said, like he’d hadn’t genuinely considered proposing on three separate occasions that week alone.

-

They were getting ready for bed in a comfortable silence. Seungcheol had left an hour before and they were finally forcing themselves to go to sleep. Minghao had just finished showering so the bathroom was still damp with steam and almost warm enough to be uncomfortable.

"Why don't you call me hyung?" He asked, watching as Hansol washed his face. He was sitting on top of the toilet seat, curled into a ball, with his head resting on his knees. It still amazed Hansol how he could make himself look incredibly small.

"Because you don't feel older than me. And I call you a bunch of other nicknames," he responded, grabbing a rag to dry off his face. "You're not even Korean."

"Well, yeah, but.." Minghao trailed off with a frown. He stared at the wall behind Hansol's head, trying to collect his thoughts. "You respect me, right?"

Hansol scoffed. "Of course I do. You think I don't?"

He shrugged. "You just treat me differently than you do with, like, Seungcheol and Joshua or even, I don’t know, Mingyu."

Hansol bit back the remark about how they had literally made out before work. And in the kitchen before they started to get ready to sleep. That wasn't going to quell his insecurities. It wasn’t often that Minghao doubted Hansol’s faith in him, but when he did it always hit hard.

"I'm closer to you than I am them," Hansol said in explanation. He moved over to stand in front of the toilet and rested his hand on top of Minghao's head. "If I didn't respect you, I wouldn't be here anymore. I wouldn't have trusted you and your genius brain four years ago.”

They had met in the shitty cafe Hansol was working at and immediately hit it off. Minghao was still working under Jeonghan, and still dating Mingyu, when he convinced Hansol to join him in his life of crime and debauchery. (Not his exact words). About six months later, after Hansol’s eighth consecutive successful job- and Minghao and Mingyu broke up- Hansol and Minghao left the company becoming their own bosses. They didn’t get together until a year after that but now that they were a couple, Hansol couldn’t imagine being with anyone else ever again. 

He brushed Minghao’s hair out of his eyes, smiling at him. “We're the dream team, baby. You don't have to worry about me not respecting you or anything like that. I trust you with my life and respect you even more than that."

The speech felt too gross and sappy for their bathroom. It probably wasn't something he should've said in front of their toilet, but that was just how they worked. Affection was always dialed to one hundred, no matter the situation.

Minghao didn't respond, just grabbed his hand and pressed a kiss to his palm. "Me too."

Hansol beamed. "Okay, glad we got that sorted out. Let's go watch something terrible on Netflix."

"It's your turn to pick," Minghao reminded as they walked out of the bathroom.

-

"Did you use my shampoo again?" he asked, sniffing Minghao's head. He was laying against Hansol’s chest, nodding off as they watched whatever the hell "Tall Girl" was. Hansol's legs were starting to fall asleep because of his weight and his shirt was wet because of his hair but he didn't want to move him.

Minghao nodded, humming out what was probably a yes. "It smells better than mine." 

"Then buy your own," Hansol grumbled, rubbing his back.

"But yours is right there," Minghao mumbled, turning so his face was pressed against Hansol's neck. He pressed a kiss to it and Hansol’s breath hitched. Minghao pulled away with a raised eyebrow and Hansol nodded.

"This movie is stupid," he said as Minghao moved to straddle his waist.

"Not as stupid as you," Minghao breathed, bending down to kiss him.

Hansol muttered, "You flatter me," into the space between their lips before Minghao kissed him again.

-

Hansol was bored out of his mind. They hadn’t done a job in three weeks and he was starting to lose his mind. He was certain that he had cabin fever.

"Go take a walk or pickpocket an old man or something," Minghao said, not looking away from his laptop. They were still in bed, like they had been for almost two days now. At least, he was researching a target. Giving Hansol hope for something to do. "You're practically vibrating right now, junkie."

“Junkie” was Minghao’s newest nickname for him. He thought that Hansol was addicted to their work and was making it very apparent that he didn’t approve.

"You know you're the one who's good at pick-pocketing," Hansol whined, bumping his head against his shoulder like an attention starved cat. Minghao had the magic touch. It was a shame he didn’t do more in person work.

Minghao absentmindedly flicked his forehead, making him whine. "Then go practice. Or go get breakfast. I'm trying to work and you're distracting me."

"It's 1 in the afternoon."

Minghao blindly threw his fist out, smacking him in the chest. "Still the first meal of the day, so therefore it's breakfast. Stop arguing with me when I’m trying to give you something to do."

Overcome with affection, Hansol pressed a kiss to his jaw. Minghao finally looked away from his computer to properly kiss him. Hansol smiled into his mouth.

He pulled away and immediately looked back at his screen. "Go get me food and I'll tell you our target's definitely illegal pet when you get back."

"Oh, I love when you talk dirty to me," he said. Minghao punched him again.

“Go away!”

-

"Baby, you got eyes on me?" Hansol whispered as he brought the champagne flute to his lips. He took a sip and tried to hide his grimace. Champagne tasted like liquid sadness.

"Always, Sol. Look up and to your right." Hansol did as instructed and saw a camera hidden in a portrait of the rich guy who's house this was. Jinyoung Park, who Minghao had told him had no relation to the hot actor who had the exact same name as him.

He was some kind of creepy producer with a music empire under his belt. The portrait with Minghao’s camera on it was a recreation of Notorious B.I.G’s “King of New York” picture. For that alone Hansol wanted to steal from him.

They had finally gotten another job after their drought (Minghao said three weeks was nothing compared to the months they’d have to wait back when they worked under Jeonghan, which was technically true, but Hansol liked to be dramatic) and Hansol could feel adrenaline rushing through him from head to toe.

"Do I look hot?" he said, placing his glass on a random table.

He could practically hear Minghao's eye roll. "Yeah, but you knew that already."

"Wanted to see if you would indulge me," he admitted.

"You two gross me out. How do you get anything done if you're too busy mentally making out?" Mingyu said. Hansol had forgotten he was there. Minghao had brought him with them to help with tech stuff and cause he got lonely in the car. (Which Hansol did not pout over, thank you very much. He was not jealous of his boyfriend sitting alone in an empty car with his ex. That was ridiculous.)

Minghao speaking brought his attention back to the room around him. "Sollie, there's a woman in front of the fireplace who is basically reeking of desperation. Please put her out of her misery and chat her up."

He scanned the room until he found her. "Stop making me flirt with old ladies. I'm not a sugar baby."

"You're cougar bait!" Mingyu cried, elated. Minghao burst into giggles and Hansol frowned all the way until he stood beside the woman.

She was an older woman, probably nearing 50, and she was dressed to the nines. Her jewelry alone probably cost more than their apartment. He smiled when she looked up at him.

“Oh, hello dear!” she cooed, her face lit up.

“Hello ma’am. I hope this doesn’t come across disrespectful, but you look lovely,” he said and she flushed. He couldn’t stop a real smile from coming onto his face. He loved making people feel nice.

“And who are you? I don’t think I’ve seen you before.” 

“I’m Vernon Choi,” he said, extending his hand for a shake. His aristocrat persona, Vernon, was the son of someone who ran an auto-parts empire. He was wealthy and in Minghao’s words “an expert flirt and extremely heterosexual”. He was different enough from Hansol’s actual personality that the mask was easy to slip into and take off, but similar enough that he didn’t feel forced. 

“Well, it’s nice to meet you, Vernon. I’m Mrs. Wen,” the woman said, smiling at him. She had a round little face, like an apple. She completely missed Hansol sliding her ring off her finger. Oh, he couldn’t wait to tell Minghao.

“Oh, excuse me one second,” Mrs. Wen said, before looking over his shoulder and waving her arm wildly. “Junhui, come here dear!”

Hansol looked and saw a person he’d thought he’d never see again. Wen Junhui worked unofficially as Jeonghan’s informant- The Rat, as Minghao had called him. He had connections that Hansol had assumed were rich people, but he never thought that he was an actual rich kid himself.

He plastered a smile onto his face as Junhui walked closer and Minghao very softly said, “Holy shit. It’s The Rat.” 

If Junhui recognized him, it didn’t show on his face when he finally stood beside Mrs. Wen.

“Vernon, this is my nephew, Junhui,” she said and Junhui offered his hand for a handshake. Hansol hoped he couldn’t feel how sweaty his hands were.

“Vernon, hi. It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Junhui said, voice soft. It contrasted his incredibly firm handshake.

“I could say the same to you,” Hansol said and Junhui’s eyes sparkled. He definitely recognized him.

Mrs. Wen grinned at them. “Why don’t you two chat while I go scope out the catering?” Fuck.

“I’ll be sure to leave your new friend exactly how you found him,” Junhui joked, smiling as his aunt walked away. The two of them watched her leave and Hansol felt all the air lungs leave his lungs when they made eye contact.

Junhui smiled at him and his heart skipped a beat. That smile could have meant anything.

“Are you on a job?” he asked. Hansol nodded, not trusting himself to speak. “Are you working with anyone?”

“Minghao,” he admitted, unable to stop himself. It would’ve been awful if Junhui was a narc but his brain to mouth filter when it came to talking about Minghao was non-existent.

“Not surprised. You two were always attached at the hip,” Junhui’s voice was calm and casual. Not at all threatening like Hansol expected. He could feel his guard slowly coming down, which he hoped wasn’t a mistake. “Can he hear me?”

Hansol nodded again.

“Hi, Minghao.” Minghao quietly said a greeting in response which made Mingyu laugh so loud it made the inside of Hanlsol’s ear vibrate.

“He says hey,” Hansol relayed. Junhui smiled again.

He walked forward and wrapped an arm around Hansol’s shoulder as he guided him towards the catering table. “Who’s the job? JYP?”

“Yeah.”

“You want help? For old times sake?”

Hansol raised an eyebrow. ”For real?”

Junhui nodded. “Yeah. I can’t stand the guy.”

Hansol laughed. He had missed Junhui’s brutal honesty.

-

Hansol threw the car door open, collapsed into it and immediately wrapped his arms around Minghao's neck to pull him into a hug. He pressed a very loud kiss to the top of his head. Then a bunch of kisses to his face until he was pushed off.

"Did it go that well?" Mingyu asked.

He sucked in a breath. "It went better than well! I have 100,000 dollars in my pocket," he nearly shouted. His body was buzzing with adrenaline. This was the most money he’d been able to get out of anyone ever. The most money he’d seen in his entire life.

Once he told JYP his fake sob story about wanting to start his own record company but being forced to run his father’s fake business instead, the guy was more than happy to throw money at him. He said, “Is 100k enough?” like it was pocket change and Hansol almost passed out.

"Holy shit," Mingyu breathed.

Minghao looked like he was going to throw up. “Oh my God. Sol, that doesn’t even sound like a real number.”

“I know! Do you wanna see the check?” he said as Mingyu climbed into the driver’s seat. Minghao nodded as the car was started.

Hansol reached into his pocket and pulled it out. He felt like he shouldn’t have even been holding it.

“Oh my God. Fuck, this can’t be real,” Minghao said, staring at all the zeroes.

He took one last glance at the check before grabbing Hansol’s face and pulling him into a kiss. Hansol melted into it, resting his hand on Minghao’s cheek as he was pulled even closer by his tie.

“Don’t make out while I’m driving! That’s so rude,” Mingyu said. Minghao pulled away and stuck his tongue out at him in the reflection of the rear-view mirror.

He rested his head on Hansol’s shoulder after closing his computer and putting it away. Hansol grabbed his hand, lacing their fingers together.

“What are we even going to do with all this money?” Minghao asked, voice just barely above a whisper.

“What we always do, I guess.” Hansol shrugged. They usually gave the majority of their money to charities or people around the city who needed it because they certainly would never use it in their lifetimes. But this felt big. Important. They were definitely gonna make someone’s day with this check.

He put the check back into his pocket and his free hand brushed the ring inside. He smiled, and kissed the top of Minghao’s head again. He’d save that for later.

-

“I don’t want to go in,” Minghao said, staring at the house in front of them. It was the house of some socialite that Hansol couldn’t remember the name of. They were going to some kind of gala.

They didn’t even need to go. They still had plenty of money left from JYP. But Junhui had sent the invitation to their apartment with the note that his aunt specifically wanted him to show up. The invite had said he could bring a plus one, and Minghao had been holed up in the apartment for over a week, so, here they were.

-

When Hansol had finally convinced Minghao that everything would be fine, that his tech stuff would be safe in their car, that no one would bat an eye at his presence, they went in.

Even though he’d been to tons of rich people parties, the sheer size and grandeur always blew his mind. This house was certainly no expectation. Everything was shiny, silvers and golds covering every surface. A beaded chandelier hung from the ceiling. There were at least twenty people walking around with trays of food and alcohol.

Minghao wrinkled his nose when Hansol turned to see his reaction.

“This is so gaudy. Gold and silver is just tacky,” he muttered. Hansol laughed. He was always full of surprises.

-

They were in a corner that was secluded from the rest of the party, devouring a tray that they had stolen from a waiter, when Mrs. Wen walked over to them. 

"Vernon! I thought that was you! Oh, it's a pleasure to see you again," she gushed. He grinned as he stood to receive her hug.

"Hi, Mrs. Wen. You look very nice, yet again," he said. She swatted at his shoulder, smiling bashfully.

"And who's your friend?" she asked, turning to Minghao who had been watching them. He stood to give her a handshake and she patted his shoulder in greeting.

"You haven't heard of him? He's an artist." He bit his tongue to hide his grin at Mrs. Wen's flushed face. Rich people hated not knowing who someone was. She shook her head.

"The8?” Her face twisted in confusion. “You seriously haven't heard of him? He just closed an exhibit in the city."

The8 was Minghao’s code name for when they worked with Jeonghan. He hadn’t wanted anyone to know who he was. Apparently that changed when he met Hansol.

"I can't say I have. No offense, sir." She almost looked ashamed. God, this was so funny.

"Oh, none taken," Minghao said, sending her a polite tight lipped smile. He was trying not to laugh.

Determined to make up for not knowing him, Mrs. Wen kept talking. "What kind of art do you do?"

"Abstract pieces mostly. Like, Jackson Pollock," he responded.

Hansol added, “But better!”. Minghao huffed a laugh out of his nose. “I mean it!”

“Whatever you say,” he said and Mrs. Wen smiled as she looked between them.

“I’d love to see some of your art sometime. I’m sure it’s lovely,” she gushed and Minghao smiled at her. It was a real one, that showed off all of his teeth. Hansol wished they were alone so he could kiss him.

-

"You were so good. You did so good," Hansol said, pulling Minghao back into his arms after they stepped inside the apartment. They had made out for the entire elevator ride up and Hansol was in no rush to stop.

He pushed Minghao against the door and kissed him again. He was sure he’d never get sick of kissing him. Minghao thought he was addicted to their work, but he was pretty sure he was addicted to the way they seemed to be molded for each other.

Minghao started to unbutton his shirt and an excited thrill traveled up his spine. He pushed himself even closer, and Minghao exhaled hard into his mouth.

“I didn’t even do anything that you don’t already do,” He argued against Hansol’s lips. He cut off Hansol’s objection with his tongue, digging his fingers into his bicep.

Hansol forgot whatever he wanted to say as Minghao wrapped his leg around his waist. He pulled away from their kiss to pant against his neck. He had to bring back his train of thought.

Minghao whined and he gave him another peck before he pulled away to talk.

“I love you and I’m proud of you for doing something out of your comfort zone. I know you don’t see it as a lot but all of those rich bitches were eating out of the palm of your hand, Mr. Artist,” he said, even though he was breathing hard. 

“You’re such a sap,” Minghao said with an eye roll. He gripped Hansol’s suit jacket to pull him back in.

“Love you too,” he whispered against Hansol’s mouth. “Take me to bed.”

-

Hansol hated fighting. It was why he identified as a pacifist. But some things had to be fought with fists and nothing else. Like the asshole who had called Minghao a homophobic slur. He ended up knocked on his ass in the middle of the sidewalk, but the guy had left in a much worse state, so Hansol considered it a win.

Minghao crouched beside him and smacked his shoulder. "You absolute moron! Don't ever do anything like that again, you asshole!"

Hansol whined, shoving his hands away before he realized Minghao was trying to pull him to his feet. "I'm sorry,” he said as he got up, “I'm sorry. It won't happen again. But I had to defend your honor!"

Minghao scoffed, rolling his eyes, as he held Hansol’s chin between his fingers, checking for injuries. "You're an idiot. I can't believe I'm in love with a complete buffoon. A pacifist who gets into fights with strangers for no reason. In the middle of the sidewalk. Outside of a fucking Starbucks. You’re so fucking stupid."

"Hey! I was defen-"

Minghao yanked him into a kiss, pulling him close. Hansol wrapped his arms around his waist. He was shaking in his arms and Hansol pulled away with a frown.

“I’m sorry, baby. I didn’t mean to scare you,” he said and Minghao rolled his eyes again.

“You don’t think about anything until after you do it. You’re lucky you’re cute,” he grumbled, stepping back so they could walk side by side. He couldn’t have been too mad because he let Hansol hold his hand.

-

They were in their bed, Hansol with a bright pink ice pack on his forehead and Minghao in his lap. They had been watching a horror movie that was apparently about killer rabbits when Minghao turned around to face him.

"I love you. You're not allowed to fight anyone ever again, for as long as you live," he said.

Hansol wrinkled his nose. "Not even if they're shit talking you?"

"I literally know martial arts, you don't have to protect me," Minghao reminded.

Hansol bit his tongue, thinking of a way he could phrase he wanted to say. He knew Minghao could handle himself, but he wanted him to know he didn’t have to. "Yeah I do, because I love you and I was raised to protect the people I love."

Minghao groaned, but when they made eye contact he was smiling. "You're so stupid. You're literally an idiot."

"I love you too," Hansol said, which earned him an eye roll and a kiss on his nose.

Minghao turned away from him again, back to the TV, and Hansol tangled their fingers together. He thought about the ring hidden away in their kitchen and smiled, even though he knew he probably looked insane.

Life was perfect.

**Author's Note:**

> i hope you enjoyed this! if you did pls leave a comment (maybe ur fave scene or line?)
> 
> twt/curiouscat: gayhyckie


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